Had an awesome time Friday evening with TheThunderbolt. We went and saw Indigenous at Knuckleheads and were joined by a few of the greatest people I know. The band was HAWESOME (© Hip Suburban White Guy). It was the third time I’ve seen them and Mr. Nanji was ON. They completely ignored stuff off their old CDs for the most part and largely focused on new stuff and jams. It was so good, I didn’t miss the old stuff at all.

We said our goodbyes to the friends and made our way out of this obscure part of Kansas City. Knuckleheads is a bit of a challenge to find. I end up driving through an industrial parking area (private property) just to get to the street where it resides. Just look for the train depot with neon lights amidst the crack and meth houses that surround it. So getting out is a bit of a chore. Especially during a night during a week where it rained every single day it seemed but especially hard Friday night.

We got to the demarcation line between knowing for sure where the hell I was and where I don’t — The train tracks — with a train blocking traffic and not moving. The impatience in me sought to continue to find a worthy exit. I thought about heading south on Chestnut Trafficway but that takes me south and I wanted to head north. I wondered if heading east would take me to Cheauteau Trafficway so that was my plan. The standing water got to be quite deep in places but I wasn’t deterred. “We’ve got to make it home” I thought and because the shortest distance between two points is a straight line, I continued to head east.

Some water is just too deep for a car im afraid. And we found out just how much is too deep. Poor Leia stalled out and became a sitting duck for the rising water to come. I started to panic. Why?

1. Middle of the road. Stuck
2. Water surrounding us
3. Crappy neighborhood
4. 1:00 in the morning
5. No help in sight
6. I promised TheThunderbolt’s kids I’d have her back in one piece.

#6 is really what did it. Precious cargo. It wouldn’t have mattered if I was out there by myself, but there is a mother of two children with me and getting her home safe and sound was all I cared about.

I reach for the number to AAA and begin to dial the number. Right about that time, a friggin tow truck with NO car hitched drives past me. Suddenly I felt like Gilligan seeing a plane fly overhead. I open the door (not smart) to go after them but they had already started to turn around. An hour later we were in the front of a flatbed heading north with Leia towed safely behind.

TheThunderbolt was a rock. Making good suggestions, offering encouragement, cracking jokes, and wiping my brow, she never let on that she was worried at all.

In spite of the fact that my poor car may be totaled(insurance baby), it’s not lost on this atheist that the universe saved us that night. How do I rationalize that things ended up so well? It’s simple really.

We are all connected.

It’s not different than any other situation really. I mean, what have you really accomplished on your own? What can you point to in your life where you don’t have to rely on others for help? The universe saved us that night like it does everyday, like when someone brings you coffee when you really needed it, or someone smiled and things might not be as bad as it seems.

This was just a message in a bottle that came back sooner than I expected. And I feel really humble and really thankful that it did.